Welcome back to the blog everyone!!! Today I will be introducing you to the man, the myth the legend...Jason Buckle!! Hands down one of the top players to ever come out of Corner Brook, an excellent defender and a lights out shooter, Jason was a player opposing teams hated to see walk on the floor!
When I was 16 I hopped on the DRL and came all the way to Corner Brook to participate in a week long basketball camp. I remember how stoked I was to be there and could not wait to test my skills!! As I was looking around, I came across this stocky dude putting on his sneakers ( Red Converse Weapons maybe?) and man he looked ready to rock! Let's just say that by the end of the week I knew his name andj ü🥎🏛️ that he also had next level game!
Jason was a joy to watch on the court. He could change of pace dribble quicker than most people and he was not hesitant to do the dirty work. He was not afraid of barrelling towards the hoop, putting fear in the eyes of opponents. Let's just say no one was volunteering to take a charge! An excellent shooter Jason had a great midrange game and could shoot the three. He could easily get to the rim and finish through contact, he was the total package!
Ok enough out of me in Corner Brook land of mountains, one way streets and Jason Buckle!!!!! Ready to ride...BUCKLE up and let's go!.
Can you give us an introduction? Name, high school, are you still involved with basketball?
Jason Keith Buckle
Son of Karen & George Buckle
Regina High School 1987-1990
Memorial University 1990-1992
Canadian Military National Basketball Program
What got you hooked on basketbal!
I got to watch my dad play senior basketball in Corner Brook against some great players like Reg Barker. I was the ball boy for my dad’s team. Having a dad who was a physical education teacher gave us access to a gym as much as we wanted and this is where my passion of basketball started. Christian brothers would open up the gym on Friday nights and sometime Saturday mornings for us to scrimmage. We always felt there was great support for young athletes to play basketball and represent our high school. I used to watch basketball games and the NCAA tournament every year with my parents Karen and George, and sisters Jennifer and Heather.
Tell me about your high school gym. Big? Where did fans sit? How was the level of fan support? What was it like playing Herdman versus Regina? I imagine the environment was absolutely nuts!
Sadly, Regina is no more and that school is now Corner Brook intermediate. In 2007 Herdman high school morphed into Corner Brook Regional High. With over 1000 students it remains one of the very best schools on the island both academically and athletically!
We had a decent size gym and the fans sat along the sides on chairs or they sat up on the bleachers on the stage. We felt that we had the best fan support in the province. There were a lot of alumni players that came to support and watch city championships and tournaments. The competitiveness and atmosphere was unlike anything I had ever experienced in any sport and at any age.
Have you played any basketball in the summer camps? NLBA?
Yes. I went to St Johns for a camp once. I also went to Acadia University where I had the pleasure of spending a week with legendary Coach Dave Nutbrown. Most of all my summers were spent on concentrating on golf and baseball.
Tell me who were some of the best teammates over the years? Discuss as many as you like a given that I recognize how hard picking just a few can be!
My longest and best teammate was Greg Cave and we are still friends to this day.
We would often walk to school together in the early morning hours to get to the gym before school even started. We used to play a lot on the outdoor court behind my house and even in the winter we would find ourselves shoveling off part of the court because we couldn’t wait for the snow to mel also like to ment pool n pool in accepted the role of taking on the best offensive player on the team, one of the most unselfish players I’ve ever played with. He freed me up offensively by accepting ths role.... he was our shut down guy on our team.
I had amazing teammates on every team that I played for in Regina High School
Best coach
Brother Spurrell - He pushed us to continuously work on our weaknesses and brought out a compete level that sometimes we didn’t even know we had. He passed on a lot of his knowledge of the game and always made us think ahead.
What was your record for points per game?! Season average?
Jason was very modest with this info so I took the liberty of finding out for him! In two seasons of MUN VARSITY ball, the first year Jason had 3 ppg and the second he doubled that to 6!
Where have you traveled for basketball? Provincials?
All throughout NFLD
Grade 10 - Brother Spruell took us to Kennebecasis, NB for the River Boat Classic.
1997 - While playing basketball in the military, I represented Canada in Belgium for the Canadian Military National Program
Who is the most difficult player you have guarded?
John Ryan played for University of Cape Breton. He was from New Brunswick. He never seemed to have a weakness offensively and his strength was his ability to control the game. His basketball IQ was off the charts.
Who is your Favorite NBA player?! NBA team?
Michael Jordan – He was the best basketball player of all time in my era and I became a San Antonio Spurs fan after they drafted “The Admiral”, David Robinson.
What is some of the best advice you could give young NL ballers?
Learn how to deal with failure because with every sport we tend to fail more then half the time. Very few people even shoot over 50%. Spend more time working on your weaknesses, and a saying my dad always told me “Hard work will beat talent, when talent does not work hard”. So never be outworked and do your hardest work when no one is watching.
Where are they now?
Jason lives in Ontario with his wife Brigitte and his children reside in New Brunswick. He works for Correctional Service Canada. He takes as much time as he can travelling, he enjoys catching up on daily sports and loves spending time with family.
Thanks so much for being such an engaging and knowledgeable interview Jason, you did a great job! Thank You for your service.
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